“Layman Chang was famous in China and he had a famous family. He said to them one day, life is difficult, don’t you think? His wife said no, life’s as easy as touching your nose when you wash your face. His son said life is impossible, it’s like trying to hit the moon with a stick. No, said his daughter, life is not difficult or easy, it is just what it is. So, I ask you, is life in South Africa easy or difficult?”

I have taken this extract from Stoep Zen by Anthony Osler – one of my most treasured books amongst my collection of self-development books.

Autumn seems to be reaching us early in Kwazulu-Natal this year. The leaves on the Cape Chestnut are already turning yellow and dropping to the ground.

I love the change of the seasons and how it reminds me of the never ending cycle of life.

I awoke to a sunrise that illuminated the clouds to saffron orange and a chill in the early morning air. The branches a black silhouette against the rising sun.

I think of others who are not as fortunate as I – perhaps a child huddled under a threadbare blanket seeing the same beauty of today’s sunrise but with a different eye. Stomach grumbling for want of food – with an orphan’s longing for warmth, and love and care.

Life is just what it is but by when we see for ourselves, pain and suffering, we are filled with compassion. Compassion leads to action and action leads to each one of us reaching out to just one needy child. Every child will play a part in the future of our country, whether for good or bad.

You can be a link in the chain that pulls South Africa into a good future.

Your reaching out to just one child will create ripples that will grow in ever widening circles to create the country that we all dream about. You and I, by pulling together, can prevent the creation of another lost generation.

A SMALL ACT Trailer 2010 from Jennifer Arnold on Vimeo.